Polysemy Patterns Research Articles

Explaining systematic polysemy: kinds and individuation

ABSTRACT Polysemy is a phenomenon involving single lexical items with multiple related senses. Much theorizing about it has focused on developing linguistic accounts that are responsive to various compositional and representational challenges in semantics and psychology. We focus on an underexplored question: Why does systematic polysemy cluster in the ways it does? That is, why do we see certain regular patterns of sense multiplicity, but not others? Drawing on an independently motivated view of kind cognition – i.e. the formal structures for different classes of kind representations – we argue for an answer centered on conceptual individuation. Specifically, we argue that classes of kind concepts vary in what they individuate (i.e. counting as one and specifying what makes it the same or different from others). By elucidating these differences, we can explain why a range of patterns of systematic polysemy are found cross-linguistically and why other patterns are not attested. Overall, our account provides an explanatory framework addressing an important question at the interface between language and mind and opens new avenues for future theoretical and empirical research.

A typology of denominal verb formation strategies

AbstractThis article aims to fill a gap in the typological literature by discussing the typology of overt denominal verb formation strategies, that is, morphosyntactic strategies other than conversion/zero‐derivation that are used to derive a verb from a nominal base. We analyse the morphological, syntactic and semantic properties of these strategies in a variety sample of 222 languages. These properties include the morphological status, the productivity, and the semantic effects of the overt verbaliser, as well as the features of the nominal base and the polysemy patterns that characterise verbalisers across languages. The typological survey is complemented by a section on the diachronic typology of overt denominal verb formation strategies, in which we identify the most common diachronic sources of overt verbalisers and discuss the diachronic dynamics that involve them in relation to other denominal verb formation strategies such as conversion/zero‐derivation.

Contrasting the semantics of prepositions through a cognitive linguistic approach

Abstract Many studies on cognitive-semantic analysis focus on the patterns of polysemy of prepositions and the explanation of how the multiple senses of prepositions are related in systematic ways. Only a few publications pay attention to the contrastive analysis of prepositions in different languages. The article addresses this gap in research literature and aims: to present a contrastive analysis of the English preposition on and its Italian and Russian partial equivalents in order to uncover the main areas of semantic asymmetry between them; to compare patterns of semantic extensions (from spatial to nonspatial senses) of these prepositions, and to determine how the similarities and differences in their spatial senses explain the similarities and differences in their nonspatial senses. The article follows a conceptual metaphor approach. Since most of the conceptual metaphors and metonyms are common cross-linguistically, similarities in patterns of semantic extensions of prepositions can be explained through the conceptual metaphors and metonymies on which these extensions are based. The article also demonstrates how the similarities and differences in spatial senses of the English preposition on, Italian su, and Russian na explain the similarities and differences in their nonspatial senses.

An account of inter-lexical polysemy in Italian prepositions: The case of per, tra, attraverso

The goal of this paper is to offer an account of an inter-lexical polysemy pattern connecting the three Italian prepositions per, tra and attraverso. It is shown via a corpus study that these prepositions can cover several related senses (i.e. they are polysemous), and that some of their senses overlap (i.e. inter-lexical polysemy is attested), thereby forming a clear-cut (lexical) contrast set. It is suggested that current theoretical proposals of polysemy cannot directly account for these data, and thus a new model must be introduced. The paper introduces such a model by combining generative (cartographic) syntactic insights with a Semantic Maps analysis. It is thus suggested that inter-lexical polysemy patterns arise because prepositions share syntactically equivalent structures, but partially different sense values are assigned to these structures. Therefore, these prepositions partition the semantic sub-space of ‘section’ spatial relations in only partially overlapping manners. Consequences for theories of polysemy and their connections to syntactic accounts of prepositions are discussed.

The zero suffix in English and Italian deverbal nouns

AbstractIn this paper we bring evidence from English and Italian deverbal zero nominals (to climb>the climb-ØN) that zero is a possible spell-out of a nominalizer otherwise overtly instantiated in suffixed nominals (examin-ation). We argue in favor of a Distributed Morphology approach, a separationist theory that recognizes and easily implements zero morphology with underlying syntax-semantics. Abstracting away from other theoretical trends and their foundational reasons to refrain from using zero suffixes, we address three properties that have been argued to fundamentally distinguish zero nominals from overtly suffixed nominals, with the implication that they instantiate a different word formation process: i) realization of verbal argument structure, ii) possibility of embedding verbalizing suffixes, and iii) semantic transparency in relation to the verb. By means of corpus data and two manually collected datasets of 561 English and 174 Italian zero nominals based on lexicographic information, we bring solid evidence against these claims, by arguing that: i) a great proportion of zero nominals do realize verbal argument structure, ii) the zero affix may embed verbalizing affixes within the limits of the selectional restrictions it independently imposes on its base, and iii) zero nominals present the same patterns of polysemy that suffixed nominals display. However, we show that zero nominals also present some idiosyncrasies to the extent that not all of them express compositional event readings with argument structure, a matter that deserves further research within the frame of their competition with suffixed nominals.

Regular polysemy and novel word-sense identification

Abstract This study examines speakers’ intuitions about novel word senses created through regular polysemy patterns. We investigate the effect of scalar regularity and lexical figure (metaphor vs. metonymy) on the identification of novel word senses, based on a detection experiment. It is shown that the more regular a polysemy pattern is, the less salient are the novel senses it produces, and that metaphorical patterns derive more salient novel senses than metonymic patterns. These results provide insights into the processing of novel word senses and support a non-homogeneous mental representation of regular polysemous words.

Challenges of FrameNet: The case of motion verbs in Persian

In this article, we intend to examine the transferability of parts of English FrameNet to other languages, specifi cally Persian. To accomplish this task, we consider the concept of motion due to its significance in cross-linguistic studies and its diff erent lexicalization patterns in typologically diverse languages. In this regard, we investigate the challenges that diff erent features of the Persian language and particularly the diff erence in the way of expressing motion events in this language make for the compatibility of English FrameNet with Persian FrameNet. Focusing on Persian motion verbs, we try to determine the extent to which it is possible to transfer diff erent components of English FrameNet — including semantic frames, coreness and peripherality status of frame elements, syntactic and semantic structures and frame-to-frame relations — to other languages. The results suggest that English FrameNet is prone to incompatibility due to the lack of systematicity in the specifi cation of frames and frame-to-frame relations. Moreover, diff erent polysemy patterns, the presence of the same word as diff erent lexical units, various syntactic alternations of lexical units, diff erent levels of importance of frame elements in lexicalization in various languages, the tendency of some languages like Persian to form compounds as well as the impact of culture make challenges for the transferability of English FrameNet to other languages.

О нестандартном (заметки о русской речи горных марийцев)

The article explores some peculiarities in the variety of Russian used by Hill Mari native speakers that may have a contact-induced nature. Several grammatical phenomena are considered, as well as polysemy patterns in the lexicon. The data are compared to research on other contact situations involving Russian.

Fishing out regular polysemy with the Gener (generic) relation

Lexical Systems are formal network models of natural language lexicons. They are characterized by their graph structure that is mainly woven by paradigmatic and syntagmatic lexical relations known as lexical functions. Being organized as “social networks of words,” Lexical Systems are radically distinct from taxonomic models which organize lexical units within hierarchized classes. In spite of their apparent messiness, these structures are perfectly suited for the storage of lexical regularities. This paper is devoted to the Gener (generic) lexical function and its significance for the identification and modeling of regular polysemy in network models of the Lexical System family. We show how the systematic lexicographic encoding of Gener relations allows for the study of polysemy patterns and the uniform modeling of this phenomenon in lexicographic models. The approach is illustrated based on the lexicographic construction of a Lexical System – the French Lexical Network (fr-LN) –, using the generic term Fr. fleur ‘flower’.

Expanding the dative semantic map: the functions of the postposition=rāin the Tātic language group

AbstractIn Tātic, a modern Northwest Iranian language group,=rāis a polysemous postposition which has not evolved into an accusative marker, unlike what happened in Modern Persian. Tātic varieties, which include all Tāti, Tālyshi and Tātoid dialects spoken in northwest Iran, exploit the postposition=rāto mark many different case roles. This paper studies the various functions of the postposition=rāand its variants in this language group. The data for the study have been gathered through fieldwork and interviews with Tāti native speakers as well as through available descriptive grammars. Using the dative semantic-map approach, we show that the main functions that=rāmarks in all Tātic dialects are ‘beneficiary’, ‘reason’ and ‘purpose’. We conclude that because some of the functions of=rāare not among the semantic roles in the conventional dative semantic map, this needs to be expanded in order to account for the polysemy patterns of=rāin the Tātic language group.

A semantic typology of location, existence, possession and copular verbs: areal patterns of polysemy in Mainland East and Southeast Asia

AbstractThis study is based on a sample of 116 languages from the Mainland East and Southeast Asian linguistic area. Its first objective is to examine four distinct synchronic patterns of areal polysemy, created by the semantic domains of copular, locative, existential and possessive verbs and the constructions they form. As a consequence, its second objective is to model the diachronic change underlying four language types identified on this basis from the data. We argue that there are three grammaticalization pathways which motivate the four synchronic patterns: Type III languages are distinguished by the grammaticalization chain: (Postural verb) > (Dwell) > Locative > Existential > Possessive,while the other two types, Type II and Type IV, show an opposing pathway: (Grasp) > Possessive > Existential. Type I and Type II languages additionally reveal a recurrent polysemy betweenLocativeandCopularverbs. On this basis, an implicational universal is adduced to the effect that no diachronic adjacency exists betweenlocativeandpossessiveconstructions. Crucially, the intervening stage of anexistentialconstruction provides the necessary bridging context forpossessivereanalysis in this first pathway, whilepossessiveverbs are formally distinct fromlocativesin the second, bearing no diachronic relationship to them. The findings on the patterns of polysemy sharing reinforce the notion of a clear typological split between Tibeto-Burman languages on the one hand, and Sinitic, Kra–Dai, Hmong–Mien, and Austroasiatic on the other.

The Polysemy and Hyponymy of Mandarin Spatial Prepositions and Localisers: Building Semantic Maps from the Ground up

The goal of this paper is to offer an overview of polysemy patterns in Mandarin’s chief spatial categories: prepositions (e.g.,zai) and simple and compound localisers (respectively,qianandqian-mian). The paper presents data from an elicitation study that shows how speakers can access multiple senses and hyponymy relations for the vocabulary items belonging to these categories. The paper shows that while prepositions can potentially cover different spatial relations in the opportune context (e.g.,zai“at”), localisers select increasingly specific senses (e.g.,qian“front” andqian-mian“front side”). The paper also shows how speakers can access hyponym-like sense relations emerging from these patterns (e.g.,qian-biancovering a more specific sense thanqian). Semantic dimensions such as “distance” and “location type” determine the strength of these hyponymy relations. The paper offers an account of these data based on the “semantics maps” model, which captures polysemy and hyponymy patternsviathe clusters of locations they refer to. It is shown that this novel model is consistent with previous works on the polysemy of spatial categories and sheds light on how Mandarin offers a unique organisation of this domain.

Corpus for the article: 'A semantic typology of locative, existential and possessive verbs in Mainland Southeast Asia: Areal patterns of polysemy in Mainland East and Southeast Asia'. Linguistics 60(1).

Corpus for the article: 'A semantic typology of locative, existential and possessive verbs in Mainland Southeast Asia: Areal patterns of polysemy in Mainland East and Southeast Asia'. Linguistics 60(1).

Corpus for the article: 'A semantic typology of locative, existential and possessive verbs in Mainland Southeast Asia: Areal patterns of polysemy in Mainland East and Southeast Asia'. Linguistics 60(1).

Corpus for the article: 'A semantic typology of locative, existential and possessive verbs in Mainland Southeast Asia: Areal patterns of polysemy in Mainland East and Southeast Asia'. Linguistics 60(1).

Kinship terminologies reveal ancient contact zone in the Hindu Kush

AbstractThe Hindu Kush, or the mountain region of northern Pakistan, north-eastern Afghanistan and the northern-most part of the Indian-administered Kashmir region, is home to approximately 50 languages belonging to six different genera: Indo-Aryan, Iranian, Nuristani, Sino-Tibetan, Turkic and the isolate Burushaski. Areality research on this region is only in its early stages, and while its significance as a convergence area has been suggested by several scholars, only a few, primarily phonological and grammatical, features have been studied in a more systematic fashion. Cross-linguistic research in the realms of semantics and lexical organization has been given considerably less attention. However, preliminary findings indicate that features are geographically bundled with one another, across genera, in significant ways, displaying semantic areality on multiple levels throughout the region or in one or more of its sub-regions. The present study is an areal-typological investigation of kinship terms in the region, in which particular attention is paid to a few notable polysemy patterns and what appears to be a significant geographical clustering of these. Comparisons are made between the geographical distribution of such patterns and those of some other linguistic features as well as with relevant non-linguistic factors related to shared cultural values or identities and a long history of small-scale cross-community interaction in different parts of the region.

“What is beauty?”

AbstractThe paper studies the semantics of four Russian key terms of aesthetic evaluation:krasivyj‘beautiful’,prekrasnyj‘beautiful/fine’,nekrasivyj’ugly/plain’ andbezobraznyj‘ugly/frightful’. It demonstrates different patterns of polysemy of the words and the nuances of meaning. Following the framework of folk aesthetics and cultural semantics, the meanings of the terms in question are represented using the Natural Semantic Metalanguage (NSM) and are shown to relate to Russian cultural themes. The analysis demonstrates cultural significance of aesthetic value in Russian and its intrinsic link with ethics, morality and politeness.

Polysemy and semantic relations in Aquilan prepositions

The goal of this paper is to offer an analysis of polysemy and related semantic relations emerging in prepositions belonging to Aquilan, a dialect of Italian. The data are based on fieldwork research, in which different polysemy tests where used in an experimental setting. Two key results emerged from the study. First, Aquilan prepositions display a degree of polysemy inversely proportional to their morphological complexity, with some prepositions being monosemous (e.g. a, a destra de, ‘ngima a). Second, prepositions’ senses can stand in relations of colexification, partial synonymy, or hyponymy. Colexification holds when related senses become part of a preposition’s sense range; hyponymy and partial synonymy (overlap) when one preposition denotes all or some of the places denoted by a second preposition. The work thus offers a paradigmatic view of the polysemy of Aquilan prepositions that sheds light on seldom attested polysemy patterns, and contributes novel insights on the ongoing debate on this phenomenon.

Глаголы перемещения веществ в некоторых финно-угорских языках

The article deals with verbs describing motion of substances (‘fl ow’, ‘stream’, ‘pour’ etc.) in three Finno-Ugric languages (Komi, Western Khanty, and Hill Mari), which were not considered in the previous typological studies of this domain. The article is aimed at identifying the semantic oppositions between such verbs from the typological perspective. The material has been collected primarily in fieldwork by elicitation and is compared to the data available in dictionaries (sometimes coming from other language varieties). Methodologically, I rely on the frame-based approach to lexical typology, which involves collocational analysis as the key procedure for highlighting semantic oppositions A sketch of falling verbs in each language is provided (focusing on how the basic parameters of cross-linguistic variation are realized in my sample), since they are contiguous to the domain being in the main focus. The main part of the article provides the description of flowing & pouring verbs in each language from the sample. I discuss several semantic features of these verbs, such as the opposition between a stream and drops, the colexification of moving liquids and granular substances (with some language-specific constraints dealing with some properties of the situations), special lexemes for small amounts of liquids emitted from some entity, etc. Some issues underdescribed in typological studies are touched upon (e.g. a special verb in Khanty for small portions of liquids or pouring substance moving in the air, such as fog or flour). The semantic connections between, on the one hand, flowing & pouring, and, on the other hand, falling of multiple subjects are analyzed, taking into account the restrictions on the subject of falling (natural entity vs. artifact, size of singular entities) and on the whole situation (distributivity) available for this colexification pattern. Other polysemy patterns developed by the verbs in question are considered as well, e.g. the extension of the basic lexeme kis’s’yny ‘flow, pour’ in Komi to some situations of destruction

Language contact between Khoisan and Bantu languages: The case of Setswana

In southern Africa, contact with the typologically and genealogically diverse Khoisan languages has resulted in various changes in Bantu languages. The most salient and well-studied change is the acquisition of clicks, cross-linguistically uncommon phonemes that are a strong indicator of Khoisan influence. However, not all southern African Bantu languages make use of clicks, and contact-induced changes other than the adoption of clicks have rarely been identified. This article provides an overview of contact-induced changes from Khoisan languages in Setswana, a Bantu language without clicks spoken in South Africa and Botswana that is still in active contact with speakers of various Khoisan languages. Setswana has been influenced by different Khoisan languages in the form of loanwords and in the form of extensions of lexical semantics based on polysemy patterns common in Khoisan languages. These contact-induced changes provide a window on the nature of past interactions between Setswana and Khoisan speakers.

The marking of uncontroversial information in Europe: presenting the enimitive

ABSTRACT This paper deals with the typology of elements which, as I argue, are best described as markers of uncontroversial information. In order to be able to speak of this class of functions cross-linguistically, I propose the label enimitive, which is derived from the Latin particle enim. On the basis of the data provided in language-particular descriptions, parallel corpora, and my own questionnaire, I investigate the core functions of the enimitive, and typical polysemy models exhibited by enimitive markers cross-linguistically. The polysemy patterns of enimitive markers of the languages of Europe are presented in the form of semantic maps. I argue that in a part of Europe, the geographical distribution of enimitive marking with a particular polysemy type exhibits an areal pattern. I also investigate some particular language-contact mechanisms in both the functions and morphosyntax of enimitive markers which could have led to the present state of affairs.